ROCHESTER — A scholarship is being made available solely to Bud Carlson Academy students thanks to a collaborative effort between the family of Deputy City Manager Karen Pollard and the Rochester Rotary Club. The scholarship is in memory of Pollard’s daughter Elaine, who graduated from Bud Carlson Academy in 2010 and passed away from cancer in November 2012.

“She had already had a full year of treatment for cancer and after that year was finished, she had the summer to recover,” Pollard said. “We knew she couldn’t go back to high school, that she wouldn’t have the stamina for a whole day of school. And because she was out of school for a year, she was behind, so she went to Bud Carlson. The staff and the other kids were so wonderful, because she wasn’t strong when she first went to school. But she got stronger and was able to graduate.”

Bud Carlson Academy offers alternative learning programs for Rochester area high school students.

“When her cancer came back, we focused more on treatment and quality of life so she could get to do the things she wanted to do. She was looking forward to college. Up until a few months before she passed, she talked about it,” Karen Pollard noted, adding that Bud Carlson Academy was at least partially responsible for that educational drive.

Karen Pollard said she and her family tried to find a way “to make that dream come true for other kids.” She noted that many students at Bud Carlson Academy have “some pretty tough stories,” but that they’re motivated to get a diploma. She also praised Bud Carlson Director Kathy Dubois, for her ability in helping the kids.

Pollard’s close connection with Rochester Rotary Club made for a quick partnership. Members of Rochester Rotary, according to Pollard, thought the scholarship was a “wonderful idea.” The organization is a 503(c)(3) nonprofit and agreed to accept donations until the Pollard family can set up the scholarship as its own nonprofit. The Rotary also awards several scholarships each year.

Memorial celebration Saturday

Family and friends will gather this Saturday, Jan. 19 at Granite Steak and Grill on Route 11 in Rochester for a celebration of Elaine Pollard’s Life. They are gathering from 1-4 p.m.

“We’re going to share Elaine’s story, talk about what she went through in the last five years,” Pollard said. “Bud Carlson will have a table for anyone who doesn’t know what their mission is. It has changed. It’s not the alternative school that some people have in their heads.”

Over $2,000 has been collected so far and the scholarship is slated to be awarded around June this year, to be followed annually, afterward. The decision about who will receive the scholarship will not be made via the traditional application process, but instead based on students’ senior projects.

Donations can be made through the Rotary and are 100 percent tax deductible. Send checks or money orders to Rochester Rotary Charities, PO Box 779, Rochester NH 03866-0779 and write Pollard Scholarship in the comment section.